Sherdog’s Official Mixed Martial Arts Rankings

Welterweight

1. Tyron Woodley (16-3-1)

Woodley dominated the first and fourth rounds in his first title defense against Stephen Thompson at UFC 205, but the welterweight champion ultimately had to settle for a majority draw to retain his strap. Given the close and contentious nature of the bout, the UFC seems content to run the 170-pound clash back, meaning that Woodley’s second title defense will likely come in early 2017 in a rematch against “Wonderboy.”

2. Robbie Lawler (27-11, 1 NC)

The minute it was announced for UFC 205 in November, MMA folks were in a tizzy over the slated Lawler-Donald Cerrone showdown at Madison Square Garden. Just as soon as the ink dried, however, Lawler was forced to bow out of the bout due to injury, leaving a hole in the hearts of hardcore MMA fans everywhere.

3. Stephen Thompson (13-1-1)

For long stretches of his UFC title clash with Tyron Woodley, Thompson was sensational. However, “Wonderboy” took an early beating on the mat in Round 1 and was nearly submitted by a Woodley guillotine in the fourth, leading to a majority draw at UFC 205. Fortunately for the karate expert, the razor-thin nature of the decision means Thompson is likely to rematch Woodley for the welterweight crown in 2017.

4. Demian Maia (24-6)

At 39 years old, Maia is not just beating competitors in a great weight class; he is blowing them out. With his sub-two-minute submission of Carlos Condit at UFC on Fox 21, Maia has now won six in a row, but more importantly, he is hardly getting hit while dominating the likes of Neil Magny, Gunnar Nelson, Matt Brown and Condit from back control. Maia’s third rear-naked choke finish in his last four fights had many calling for the Brazilian to challenge for the UFC welterweight title.

5. Rory MacDonald (18-4)

MacDonald spent 11 months away from the cage following his “Fight of the Year” with Robbie Lawler in 2015 and took enough damage in his brutal title challenge that many wondered if the 26-year-old would be the same fighter upon his return. On June 18 in Ottawa, Ontario, MacDonald was far from vintage form, as Stephen Thompson befuddled the “Red King” for 25 minutes, earning a unanimous decision. The Canadian hit free agency after the loss and has since agreed to terms with the Bellator MMA promotion.

6. Ben Askren (15-0, 1 NC)

Askren may be on his way out of these 170-pound rankings through no fault of his own. The two-time NCAA wrestling champion may be one of the very best welterweights in the world, but with One Championship realigning its weight classes, Askren’s day of actually being a 170-pounder seem to be over for the time being.

7. Carlos Condit (30-10)

Less than eight months after turning in the frontrunner for 2016 “Fight of the Year” over five brutal rounds with Robbie Lawler, Condit could not last two minutes with Demian Maia and his grappling prowess before being tapped with a rear-naked choke. Condit is 2-5 in his last seven fights, and his quick, one-sided loss to Maia has “The Natural Born Killer” publicly questioning whether he will continue fighting.

8. Kelvin Gastelum (12-2)

After blowing weight badly, again, for his slated UFC 205 bout with Donald Cerrone, Gastelum deserves few if any promotional favors. However, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 17 winner is now due to move back up to 185 pounds to take on Tim Kennedy at UFC 206 on Dec. 10, pending the approval of the Ontario Athletic Commission.

9. Lorenz Larkin (18-5, 1 NC)

A former 205-pounder in Strikeforce, Larkin began his UFC career as a middleweight and went 1-4 in those five fights. Since dropping to 170 pounds, he is 4-1. He put on an absolute master class at UFC 202 against Neil Magny, who had won nine of his last 10 fights in the Octagon. Larkin is one of the UFC’s biggest wild cards at this point, and if “The Monsoon” has truly turned a corner as a welterweight, he may emerge as a viable title contender in the near future -- if he re-signs with the UFC.

10. Douglas Lima (28-6)

Lima’s first Bellator MMA welterweight championship run was ended by Andrey Koreshkov in 2015 in a one-sided, 25-minute decision. After rebounding in July with a decision over veteran Paul Daley, Lima rolled into his title rematch with Koreshkov at Bellator 164 in Tel Aviv, blasted the Russian with a counter hook in the third round and reclaimed the Bellator crown.

Other Contenders: Donald Cerrone, Jake Ellenberger, Andrey Koreshkov, Neil Magny, Gunnar Nelson

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